A Royal Navy warship has shot down a suspected attack drone targeting commercial ships in the Red Sea, Britain’s defence secretary said on Saturday.

Grant Shapps said that HMS Diamond fired a Sea Viper missile and destroyed a drone that was “targeting merchant shipping”. The overnight action is the first time the Royal Navy has shot down an aerial target in anger since the 1991 Gulf War.

Shapps said attacks on commercial ships in the global trade artery by Yemen’s Houthi rebels “represent a direct threat to international commerce and maritime security”.

“The UK remains committed to repelling these attacks to protect the free flow of global trade,” he said in a statement.

Global shipping has become a target during the war between Israel and Hamas, which like the Houthis is backed by Iran. The Houthis have launched a series of attacks on vessels in the Red Sea, as well as launching drones and missiles targeting Israel.

Earlier this month, three commercial ships in the Red Sea were struck by ballistic missiles fired from Houthi-controlled Yemen, and a US warship shot down three drones during the assault, the US military said.

On Friday Maersk told all its vessels planning to pass through the Bab el-Mandeb Strait in the Red Sea to “pause their journey until further notice”.